In the latest merger to hit the UAE's banking sector, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) has joined forces with Union National Bank, and acquired Al Hilal Bank, to create the region's fifth largest lender, with assets of $114 billion. Elsewhere, it's going to be a big day for Apple, as its financial results are expected later today.Daily headlines from the UAE and around the world brought to you by Gulf News. See more at: http://gulfnews.com/videos
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00:00And the consolidation of the UAE's banking sector rolls on.
00:06This morning, ADCB, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, confirmed that it would be swapping shares
00:10with Union National Bank, UNB, to create a new entity that would then be acquiring the
00:16privately owned Al Hilal Bank.
00:19UNB's CEO has stepped down or retired, and the group CEO of Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank
00:25will become the new CEO of the new entity.
00:29The new lender will have $114 billion of assets, making it the fifth largest bank in
00:34the region.
00:35We don't know right now about any potential job losses, although that probably will become
00:41better known in the coming days.
00:43The transaction or merger is expected to close in the first six months of this year.
00:48Elsewhere, Huawei, the Chinese technology maker, has refuted allegations by the US that
00:56it has obstructed justice, stolen technology and committed bank fraud.
01:01On Monday night, US lawmakers filed charges against the Chinese company of fraud and theft
01:07after a long battle over whether Huawei was committing crimes in the US.
01:13The war between the two has already caught up Huawei's CFO, its chief financial officer,
01:19the daughter of the company's founder, who was arrested in Canada last month and is currently
01:24being held on bail awaiting extradition to the US.
01:29The allegations and the accusations threaten US and China trade talks as the two countries
01:35seek to overcome the differences that have held them down since Trump took office in
01:402016.
01:43And lastly, today is a huge day for the California-based technology company Apple as they prepare to
01:49release results that are expected to be weaker than usual.
01:53On January 2nd, they put out an announcement saying that they were expecting lower revenues
01:58on the back of weak growth in China, the first time in over 10 years that they will miss
02:05a target.
02:07That weak growth has impacted other companies like Intel, like Nvidia and like the construction
02:12company Caterpillar, all of whom have suffered from the slowdown in business in China.
02:19Apple have also already been hit by one bad news story today when it was revealed that
02:24FaceTime calls could snoop on the respondent or the recipient of that call.
02:29It was an accidental technology flaw that allowed you to be able to listen even if the
02:34other person hadn't picked up the phone.
02:35You could listen to what they were doing, the microphone would turn on.
02:39Apple say that they are in the process of resolving the issue and it should be done
02:43shortly.
02:44That's all for today.
02:45Thanks very much for watching.
02:46You can find more from www.golfnews.com.
02:48I'm Ed Clouds.
02:49See you tomorrow.